The contracts for NFL draft picks are set by the Collective Bargaining Agreement, and so it’s actually a little surprising that Patriots third-round pick Jacoby Brissett was the only pick who decided not to hire an agent. But Brissett didn’t hire an agent, and he doesn’t have a contract, either.
As noted by Mike Reiss of ESPN, Brissett says he’s sure that “It will get done,” even though it isn’t done yet, and even though every other Patriots draft pick signed on May 6. Around the NFL, about three-quarters of draft picks have signed.
It’s probably nothing to be concerned about, as the NFL’s rookie salary structure is set: Brissett will sign a four-year, $3,161,529 contract with a signing bonus of $680,603. But the Brissett delay may show that players without agents need to take a little more time to go over their contracts themselves, not having an agent to do the job for them. (Brissett does have an adviser in former NFL safety Abram Elam, and he also has the NFL Players Association at his disposal.)
A quarterback from North Carolina State, Brissett is expected to be third on the depth chart behind Tom Brady and Jimmy Garoppolo -- and second on the depth chart if Brady is suspended for the first four games of the season.